Business Briefs: Stocks jump to record high

April 11th, 2013by Staff Reports and Associated Press in Business Around the Region

Stock market tile

Photo by
Associated Press/Times Free Press.

Stocks jump to record high

Technology stocks roared back Wednesday, driving the Standard & Poor's 500 and Dow Jones industrial average to record highs.

The industry has lagged the broader market this year, but surged after network communication company Adtran reported earnings that were double what Wall Street analysts expected. That boosted optimism that businesses will increase spending on technology equipment.

The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 128.78 points, or 0.9 percent, to 14,802.24. It was the third straight gain for the blue-chip index and its biggest one-day rise in a month. The S&P rose 19.12 points, or 1.2 percent, to 1,587.73, also a record high.

Among stocks making big moves, Facebook rose 98 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $27.57 after General Motors said it would start running ads on the social network site. Adtran rose $2.75, or 14 percent, to $22.46, and JDS Uniphase rose 64 cents, or 4.8 percent, to $13.98.

CBL buys mall in North Dakota

Chattanooga-based CBL & Associates Properties Inc. has completed the acquisition of the remaining 51 percent interest in Kirkwood Mall in Bismarck, N.D. Last December, the shopping center company acquired a 49 percent non-controlling interest in the mall.

In conjunction with the acquisition of the remaining interest, CBL assumed the $40.4 million non-recourse loan secured by the property, which bears a fixed interest rate of 5.75 percent and matures in April 2018.

"The mall is a terrific addition to our portfolio and is experiencing positive trends," said Stephen Lebovitz, president and chief executive of CBL.